Happy Resurrection Day!

What a glorious day this is--the day we Christians celebrate the Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour from the dead! Think about it; Jesus had more influence on this world than any other person in history. The whole calendar is based on His life. Many people from different religions think highly of Jesus. Some say He was a great teacher. Some say He was a prophet. Others think He was a great philosopher. And of course, we Christians believe He is God. Don't you think that with so much admiration for Jesus that there would be a shrine at His grave with flowers and incense burning 24/7? Well, the reason you don't hear of that is because He's not in a grave! He has risen! He has risen indeed! That's what sets Jesus apart from any other religious leader.

Paul, who wrote most of the New Testament, is himself a proof of the Resurrection of Christ. Why else would someone who was so against Christ and His followers, to the point of persecuting Christians and even killing them, change his whole life to preach Christ and even be persecuted for the Gospel himself, if the proof of Christianity (the resurrection) was not proven to him? He wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:3-7 (NIV), "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance[a]: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that he appeared to Peter, and then to the Twelve. After that, he appeared to more than five hundred of the brothers at the same time, most of whom are still living, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all he appeared to me also..." He went on to write in verses 12-14, "But if it is preached that Christ has been raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? If there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith."

I'm with Peter when he wrote in 1 Peter 1:3-4 (NIV), "Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, and into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade—kept in heaven for you."

'News from Legacy Ministries'

Click on the title to this post to read the April Newsletter for Legacy Ministries. Thank you for your prayers and support!

Spiritual Warfare Prayer

It seems as though many people close to me are facing attacks from the enemy right now. I know that as long as we are on this earth we will face trials. Jesus promised that. That's one of His promises we don't like to face. He said, "In this world you will have tribulation, but be of good cheer. I have overcome the world!" (John 16:33) The good news is that in the end, God's Word prevails over every attack of the enemy! In the meantime, we have to seek Him with our whole heart and receive His direction and Peace.

I have decided to take the "Spiritual Warfare Prayer" from my book, Loving God With All Five Senses, and post it for all you who are facing trials. It is based on the scripture passage from Ephesians the 6th chapter. I pray it will help you as you face those things that eventually will make you a better person.

"Thank you, Lord, for placing the Helmet of Salvation on my head. It will protect me against any thought-bomb the enemy tries to place in my mind. I will not take them on as my thoughts in the Name of Jesus! I place my thoughts in Your hands. Please forgive me for the thoughts I hold on to that are not of you. I ask you to change my mind set to be more like the mind of Christ. Thank you for transforming me by the renewing of my mind.

Thank you, Lord, for placing the Breastplate of Righteousness on me. It will protect my heart. Lord, I place all my emotions in Your hands. Help me to remember that You are with me regardless if I “feel” it or not. Please forgive me when I fear. Thank you that though my righteousness is as filthy rags, yet You have clothed me with Your righteousness because of what You did at Calvary!

Thank you, Lord, for placing the Belt of Truth on my waist. Please reveal any hindrance or lie I have been holding onto that would keep me from trusting You and replace it with Your Truth, oh Lord! Help me to let go of my perspective of the Truth and seek Your perspective knowing that Your Truth will set me free! Help me also to have a deaf ear to the lies of Satan and give me ears to hear what the Spirit says.

Thank you, Lord, that my feet are shod with the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace. I am being prepared for the calling of God on my life to take the Gospel of Peace to others. Help me to remember that no matter what I go through, You will use the circumstances in my life, both good and bad, to prepare me for the destiny You have chosen for me. Thus I can have peace in the midst of the storm. Thank you that every step I take will be in Peace and I can take that Peace to people wherever I go!

Thank you, Lord, for putting within my hand the Shield of Faith, whereby I can quench every fiery dart of the wicked one. Help me to remember that Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen and that without Faith it is impossible to please You. Forgive me when I have gone forward in my own strength and abilities instead of totally relying on You. Help me to dwell in the Secret Place of the Most High where I will be protected from any onslaught of the enemy.

Thank You, Lord, for giving me the Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God—the only offensive weapon. All the other armor You give me is for protection, and I thank You for just how protected I really am! This weapon is the only thing I need to combat the enemy. It is really an arsenal of many weapons that are not carnal, but are mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds. Forgive me when I fail to read and study Your Word when You have prompted me to do so. I choose to read Your Word, meditate on Your Word, memorize Your Word and use Your Word against the enemy in due time. Help me to not fret over what I will say, but to trust Your Spirit to give me just the right Word in the very hour I need it. I do not want to “debate” Your Word thereby casting pearls before swine, but I will speak Your Word to those who are hungry for it as well as proclaim to the enemy “It is Written!” Remind me also, that my enemy is not flesh and blood—it is not any person, including myself—but it is Satan and all the principalities with him. Therefore, I pray that You would remind me to not let corrupt communication proceed out of my mouth but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers.

And having done all, I will stand! Thank You that the battle is not mine, but it is Yours! Thank You for the victory in Christ Jesus who came to destroy the works of the enemy! In reality, the enemy has already been crushed under Your feet by your death and resurrection. He is therefore under my feet as I trust in You and let You dwell in me! I am more than a conqueror through You who love me with a perfect love that casts out all fear! And for that I will ever be grateful!"

'News from Legacy Ministries'

Click the link above by clicking on the title of this post to read our March Newsletter. God is on the move! He is doing great things at the Legacy Equipping Center! Thanks for your prayers and support!

Ep 5 - Passage Lookup - New International Version - BibleGateway.com

Ep 5 - Passage Lookup - New International Version - BibleGateway.com

I was stirred to go to Ephesians 5 this morning. When I read it, I thought "Wow! What if we all did what this says? What a difference that would make!" So, my challenge to you today is to go the the link (by clicking on the title of this blog post), pray and ask God to give you a desire to apply this passage to your life. Ask God to actually live this through you.

I would love to to know if this positively affects any of you. Please leave a comment and let me know! Go now and be immitators of God, bringing light to the darkness of this world!

Do WHAT?

The Christian faith is full of paradoxes. What is a paradox? The first definition on dictionary.com is "a statement or proposition that seems self-contradictory or absurd but in reality expresses a possible truth."

Think about it...

I am to die to my self in order that I may live.

I am to give so that I can receive.

I am to humble myself to God, and He will lift me up.

I have found all of these seemingly absurd statements to be very true. They are not easy to do in the natural, but once you can get past the natural and allow God to give you a supernatural desire, a life of satisfaction is the result. There is another paradox in the Bible that seems harder than any of them. We are told to bless those who persecute us. WHAT?!

Let's look at this closer...

Romans 12:14-19 (NIV) - "Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everybody. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. Do not take revenge, my friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for it is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord. On the contrary:
'If your enemy is hungry, feed him;
if he is thirsty, give him something to drink.
In doing this, you will heap burning coals on his head.' Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good."

Another passage says...

1 Peter 3:8-10 (NIV) "Finally, all of you, live in harmony with one another; be sympathetic, love as brothers, be compassionate and humble. Do not repay evil with evil or insult with insult, but with blessing, because to this you were called so that you may inherit a blessing. For,
'Whoever would love life
and see good days
must keep his tongue from evil
and his lips from deceitful speech.' "

What if more people did this? How would the world change? That would definitely be walking out the talk. Jesus was our example. Isaiah prophesied Jesus, the Messiah's death many years before it actually happened when he wrote

"He was oppressed and afflicted,
yet he did not open his mouth;
he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,
and as a sheep before her shearers is silent,
so he did not open his mouth." (Is 53:7 NIV)

Even in the worst of persecution, Jesus did not try to defend Himself. Yes, His accusers seemingly won the battle when they killed Him. However, three days later, look what happened! He was resurrected from the dead and conquered death, hell and the grave! I don't care what the enemy tries to do to silence God and His people. God always has the last word!

I recently told a friend this who is facing some crazy accusations that have gotten out of hand. She responded, "That's Jesus. He's God!" I replied, "Yes, but where does Jesus live?" She knew when she said, "In me!"

Lord, help us to look to You for our approval instead of people. Their unkind words will not hurt as bad if we do not need their approval. That way when they persecute us, we will have what we need to show them grace and repay their evil with good. Help us to show them Your goodness. May our actions be the seed that draws them to Your kindness which leads them to repentance. Help us to have the grace to release them to You, knowing that You can take care of the situation much better than we can!

'News from Legacy Ministries'

Click the link to see our February Newsletter.
'News from Legacy Ministries'